For decades, undocumented immigrants have faithfully paid their taxes. They did this knowing they would never receive a Social Security check, never collect Medicare and never qualify for unemployment benefits.
And yet, in 2022 alone, they contributed an estimated $96.7 billion in taxes —$25.7 billion to Social Security, $6.4 billion to Medicare and $1.8 billion to unemployment insurance. These numbers are the unpaid promises of a system that now dares to use their honest participation against them.
This month, The Guardian reported a deeply troubling development: The Internal Revenue Service has entered into an agreement with the Department of Homeland Security, granting Immigration and Customs Enforcement access to confidential tax records of undocumented immigrants with final deportation orders.
This is not just a policy shift — it’s a blatant betrayal, a betrayal of the trust that millions of people have placed in this country’s institutions, and a betrayal of our shared values of dignity, justice and human rights.
This agreement clearly weaponizes the integrity of millions of hardworking members of our communities. It punishes people who have done everything right — who have worked, contributed, stayed in the shadows and still showed up every tax season, trusting their compliance would not become a tool for their removal. The IRS-ICE agreement is not only morally repugnant, but it also threatens to dismantle the fragile trust that underpins our tax system and our democracy.
Section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code is crystal clear: Tax information must be kept confidential, with very limited exceptions. Legal experts and civil rights organizations have already sounded the alarm that this agreement stretches far beyond the bounds of what the law allows.
When the very foundation of the IRS — confidentiality — is compromised, the ripple effects are catastrophic. Families won’t file. Workers will disengage. Our communities will suffer. It’s no wonder the acting IRS Commissioner Melanie Krause resigned, reportedly in protest of this agreement.
That’s because this is more than a policy misstep. It is a direct assault on immigrant communities who have long carried the weight of this economy on their backs without recognition or protection. It is a message that no matter how hard you work, how faithfully you contribute or how deeply you believe in this country, you are disposable.
This moment calls for courage — from our elected officials, from our institutions and from every American who believes in fairness and humanity. Because if we allow this betrayal to stand, we are saying that justice has a price tag — and that some people simply don’t matter enough to protect.
Marcela Rodriguez, co-chair of the Illinois Latino Agenda and co-executive director of Enlace Chicago
SEND LETTERS TO: letters@suntimes.com. To be considered for publication, letters must include your full name, your neighborhood or hometown and a phone number for verification purposes. Letters should be a maximum of approximately 375 words.
Too few conservatives willing to go on NPR, PBS
It is particularly funny — and sad — to see NPR and PBS pilloried in the Oval Office and on right-wing media as suffering from “left-wing bias.”
If anything, public media is far too accommodating to the delicate sensitivities of the right. Anyone who tunes into NPR knows conservatives are always asked to provide their point of view.
A vast majority decline or simply do not respond to such invitations. It’s clear they are afraid of being savaged by their own side for even appearing on public media, or they are simply too pusillanimous to articulate their beliefs in any but a MAGA-friendly room.
You don’t miss your water till the well runs dry, and you won’t miss your democracy until Donald Trump lays waste to it.
Anne Morse, West Town
Plenty of cars to buy other than Tesla
Yes, the vehicle you own is a political decision. Elon Musk is being hit hard in his pocketbook so much that he may be stepping away from the Destruction Of Government Employees.
There are alternatives, like Ford and Chevrolet, and your money stays in the United States. Because of the “drill, baby, drill policy,” a hybrid could be a great answer for now. Check out their gas mileage.
Kevin Berg, Fox Lake
Taxing the penguins
Putting tariffs on the uninhabited Antarctic Heard Island is fine. I’m sure the penguins there can afford it with those nice suits.
Tom DeDore, Garfield Ridge
As retirement accounts dwindle, will voters wake up?
After watching my life savings go down with the markets, I hope all the people who helped put this president into office are happy watching their net worth depreciate.
I have been alive since Franklin D. Roosevelt was president and then all the Republican and Democrat presidents after, but I have never experienced such an embarrassment to our democracy as Donald Trump and his associates. I only pray people will wake up!!
M. Zelkin, Lake View
Not all letter writers presenting facts
Why are you giving a voice to Larry Craig of Wilmette?
He is an uninformed person who constantly spews misinformation. Statistics show more people have been deported under Barack Obama and Joe Biden than under Donald Trump’s first term. Do your job, and stop these MAGA jerks spreading lies.
Also these same people who don’t live in Chicago sure seem to know how to run the city from their suburban homes.
Richard Orrico, Melrose Park